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With the upcoming election to the United States Senate this November it’s every political party for itself as 37 seats are up for grabs. We won’t go into nomination strategies on Brand New, but we can certainly get into the logo that the Democratic National Committee has nominated as its best candidate to carry the party and its cadre of politicos gunning for the seats in the upcoming primaries and beyond. The logo was unveiled yesterday and was designed by New York-based SS+K.

I’m sure you’ll also notice our new look. Some may think: it’s just a logo — it’s just a brand. Well I don’t believe the Democratic Party is a logo or a brand — we are much more than that. We are Democrats. We create change that matters. Ours is a party of ideas and ideals, of policies and people, history and purpose.

So call it what you will — this new identity for our party captures the spirit that unites us all. Democrats — all of us — are working for the change that matters.— Democrats.org blog

Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine reveals the new logo during an event in the Jack Morton Auditorium on the campus of George Washington University. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

I’m all for simplicity and directness, but I wonder if this crosses the line from simple to simpleton. I mean, it’s hard to argue against a properly centered “D” within an equally weighted stroked circle. It’s properly done. It would require some really sucky design skills to screw it up. But even then it’s kind of a let down. I salute the effort of moving away from donkeys and flags and the red-white-and-blue palette has been dialed down with just enough red in the tagline to remind you of it. I do like the typography and the choice of a bookish sans serif, it looks strong and contemporary. I’m surprised it’s not Archer, which has suffered from overuse in 2010 and would have been the obvious choice here. But not to leave Hoefler & Frere-Jones unpaid, there is a little bit of Gotham underneath.

The review may sound a little harsh for a simple logo and it probably is, especially when you consider how bad or ugly this could have been a year or two ago when political identity was the least innovative market.

Reviewed
September 16, 201009.16.10by Armin

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With the upcoming election to the United States Senate this November it's every political party for itself as 37 seats are up for grabs. We won't go into nomination strategies on Brand New, but we can certainly get into the logo that the Democratic National Committee has nominated as its best candidate to carry the party and its cadre of politicos gunning for the seats in the upcoming primaries and beyond. The logo was unveiled yesterday and was designed by New York-based SS+K.